Abstract: AIM: To explore the effect of anticoagulant management by clinic pharmacists on increasing the efficacy of anticoagulant therapy with warfarin used in patients with cardiac valve surgery. METHODS: 203 patients undergone cardiac valve surgery who received anticoagulant therapy with warfarin in Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital from June 2012 to December 2012 were enrolled in the study group. As well,212 patients with cardiac valve surgery from January 2010 to December 2010 were in the control group. In the study group,all the patients were received anticoagulant management and health education by clinic pharmacists,the differences between the total international normalized ratio (INR) target rate of warfarin,the INR target rate before discharge,the time to first INR in the target,the occurrence rate of hemorrhage and thrombosis in the two groups were compared. The patients in the study group were received questionnaire survey and compared the differences in the scores of admission and before discharge. RESULTS: The total INR target rate in the study group were significantly higher than those in the control group(P=0.010),and the time to first INR in target was shorter than that in the control group(P=0.043). In the study group,the scores of patients before discharge were significantly higher than those of admission(P<0.001).CONCLUSION: Clinic pharmacists to participate in the anticoagulant management and systemically anticoagulant health education on patients can obviously enhance the efficacy of warfarin therapy and the patients' anticoagulant knowledge,which contributes to improving the patients' compliance.

Key words: warfarin, anticoagulant management, health education, clinic pharmacists, pharmaceutical care